Slow-moving sloth, hedgehog & more live animals at The Academy of Natural Sciences

The Parkway museum is focusing on climate change in 2020. A new exhibit highlights several species that survived millions of years by adapting.

A group of children is knocking against the glass window that separates them from a two-toed sloth, shouting for the hairy creature to wake up.

Their noisy energy, however, is no bother for the notoriously slow-moving animal who continues its slumber uninterrupted, part of a new exhibit at the Academy of Natural Sciences of Drexel University.

Survival of the Slowest opened earlier this month at the museum that’s located on the Benjamin Franklin Parkway by Logan Circle.

The exhibit’s purpose is to “…meet animals that have survived for millions of years despite being very slow, and learn about the puzzling sides of evolution and adaptation,” according to the museum’s webpage.

Along with the two-toed sloth, visitors can see the leisurely behavior of a tortoise, snake, iguana and hedgehog.

An animal keeper even takes them out of their enclosures for short periods, giving visitors a chance to touch them.

Survival of the Slowest also features interactive digital games. Participants can tap, drag and drop answers on the screens to learn facts about the animals.

The exhibit opened Feb. 15 and will run through Sept. 20. Check out the museum website for details on hours, tickets and more.

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